You must share yourself!

Conversation with an extraordinary woman: Dr. Kyriaki Chatziioannidou

Last month had the immense privilege to interview Dr. Kyriaki Chatziioannidou, Senior Surgeon and Head of Gynecology and Obstetrics at Hopital de Nyon.

As an NLP Coach and a Life Coach, I am passionate about what drives human beings and how they step into their genius. Meeting Kyriaki in a medical setting and discovering how she blossoms in a completely different area inspired this article.

Dr. Kyriaki Chatziioannidou is a fulfilled woman, a gifted professional and an accomplished artist – she is a poem writer, a published author and she recites her Greek and French collections in multiple countries and cities.

Born in Naoussa near Thessaloniki, Greece, the cradle of Aristote’s school, young Kyriaki grew up in an environment where education, excellence, art and beauty were highly praised. It is not a coincidence that from her youngest age she developed a passion for poetry and literature. Encouraged by her mother, she started reading Greek mythology at four years old and wrote her first poem at nine, which was then published.

She studied medicine in Greece, and her further professional studies and medical practice led her to live in France, in Alsace and finally Switzerland in 2008.

In 2023, Kyriaki published her first poem collection in French which title recalls a tiny, bright-yellow flower that grows Cythera: “Sempre viva”, or “immortelle” in French). This first book in French talks about the journey of romantic love through thirty verses on desire, illusion, separation, loss, hope, and the universal message that love always wins.

I was impressed to hear that Kyriaki went on stage, several times, to recite these poems in Greek and in French. And my first question for her was:

Do you ever suffer from the imposter syndrome?

Kyriaki: “Not really. I always listened my inner knowing, a message that comes from within. When I write, my intuition guides me to feel whether a poem is good or not. In the past, yet, I have been looking for my mother’s approval and then for my husband’s approval, until I could completely trust my intuition. I did learn a technique, since writing poems requires a technique and once you have it, you can play and create. And when I recite my own poems, I am at ease, because I can express the very emotional tone that I infused in the writing, and it just flows. And I learnt to become comfortable reciting poems in French”.

 
What’s the link between medicine and poetry?

“In my view, medicine and philosophy are closely connected. In the world of medicine, we are surrounded by all the dimensions of human experience. Medicine is all about life, emotions, disease, so I became more sensitive to human emotions and their multiple facets.

In particular, in gynecology we focus on the woman essence, and this world is just fascinating. The woman’s inner universe is filled with such mystery and poetry. With each patient I am amazed by what I see, it is always a discovery.

So, for me, working in the world of medicine and writing poetry are deeply connected. And I love that writing poetry allows me to live multiple lives in one. It is fulfilling.

“Out of self-criticisim and fear of judgement, many talented people (and clients I work with) repress their creative expression. What would you say to encourage them?”

“It’s important to share who you are. You must be courageous, you must expose yourself, you must share yourself because this is helpful for others. Take an honest look at yourself and share what you have today, even if it is imperfect. And you will do better tomorrow, because you will improve with practice. We evolve each day, we change each day, but there is always something valuable you can express.

It is selfish to keep your feelings, your ideas, your impressions for yourself. We all have something to share, we influence each other all the time.

When you express your feelings, it benefits everyone because we are all interconnected beings. And each one of us can relate to someone else’s journey and experience, no matter if we live in the same town, city or country. We learn from each other; we can all relate to someone’s emotions and stories. There is something valuable in each person’s experience because it is is unique.

Thank you, dear Kyriaki for your inspiring words.

‘The purpose of life is to discover your gift. The meaning of life is to give your gift away. ‘ Pablo Picasso

#leadershipforwomen #creativity #selfexpression #growth